President Donald Trump continues to talk about annexing Greenland, Canada, and the Panama Canal. We are beginning to see polling data on how the residents of these regions feel about the idea.
- 80% of Canadians “would never vote for Canada to become part of the United States,” according to an Ipsos poll.
- The Guardian reports that 85% of Greenlanders are strongly opposed to becoming part of the United States, with only 6% in favor.
- While opinion polls of Panamanian’s views are not available, 46% of Americans oppose the idea of the U.S. taking over the Panama Canal. 35% oppose it strongly. 41% are open to the idea, with just 21% strongly favoring the plan.
The same poll showed that larger numbers of Americans oppose annexing Canada, Greenland, or Gaza. Further polling is likely in the future, but there is at this point no reason to imagine that either the residents of the territories Trump is eyeing or that most the people of the United States are in favor of the president’s expansionist ideas.
Who wants statehood?
One U.S. territory does want statehood. Puerto Rico, which has been under the U.S. flag for 126 years, has officially requested statehood. The territory can be admitted as a state by a simple majority in Congress, and plans for the transition have been made in a number of bills in the past. It would be an easy win for the administration if they want to increase the number of states in the Union.
58% of Puerto Rico voters chose statehood in a three-way contest in November, 2024. This was the fourth referendum to show statehood in the majority.
A YouGov survey shortly prior to the 2024 election confirmed that the majority of Americans also continue to support statehood for Puerto Rico. Newsweek reported that 59% of respondents favored statehood for the U.S. territory, with only 16% opposed. 25% described themselves as “unsure.” Previous research has found that people with less information — say, those who are unaware that Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens — are most likely to be in the uncertain group.
YouGov reported that the results of their most recent survey were similar to those of a comparable survey in 2016. Multiple Gallup Polls have also shown that Americans across the nation not only favor statehood for Puerto Rico, but have done so consistently for many years.
Differences among political parties
The YouGov survey found that Democrats were most enthusiastic about statehood, with 79% favoring statehood and 6% opposed.
Republicans were less supportive at 41%. However, with only 29% of Republicans opposed to statehood, statehood is the most popular option for Republicans and Democrats alike.
56% of Independents chose statehood and 15% of them were opposed to statehood.
In short, Americans of all political persuasions prefer full equality for Puerto Rico through statehood. The survey also found that demographic differences among respondents didn’t affect the preference. Just as we can clearly say, after four plebiscites favoring statehood, that voters in Puerto Rico choose statehood, we can also say that Americans in general support statehood for Puerto Rico.
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